Winter is nearly upon us. Where I live nights have been pretty cold, but the days have been beautiful. I have been very tempted to whip out the heaters, but want to hold off as long as possible.

Last year my electricity bill was $910 for winter. The highest I have eve had and I have no desire to repeat that. Last year I was lazy. I didn’t use my “winter warm up kit”. It sounds stupid, but most years there are specific things I use in winter to help keep us warm and other than the initial cost, they are free!

On our beds we have
– Lots of blankets
– Flannellete sheets
– Hot water bottles or heat packs if desired
– Fleece sleeping bags. What is a fleece sleeping bag? Basically a big bit of fleece, folded in half and sewn up to be a sleeping bag. If you have a large enough piece and fold it twice, so it is a double thickness bag it is really warm. Using this I have no need for an electric blanket.

On our bodies we
– Rug up! Put a jumper/sweater on, scarf, beanie etc.
– Socks – if you wear 2 pairs at once, even thin socks are warm
– Ugg boots – these are so warm. I find if your feet are warm the rest of you feels warmer. Of course, if you are not wearing weather appropriate clothing you will still feel the cold.

Around the house
– Check for draughts and block them if possible
– Hang thick curtains to keep the heat in
– Open the curtains when the sun is out so it warms the house
– If you have to heat the home, try to heat one area and everyone spend time there instead of heating the whole house
– Get floor rugs (we have wooden floors so recently got a rug for the lounge room. It was pretty bare before.)
– Keep doors and windows closed. Especially the ones to the bathroom as a lot of heat can be lost here.
– If using the oven at all, once finished crack it open a little to let the heat into the room easier.

In previous years we have done the above and our bills have always been $300 or less, usually closer to $200. I know electricity is going up and up, so we have to do everything we can to cut costs.

One Response to “How to keep warm in winter for free”

Have you tried turning off the hot water system during the day or the night? If you have an electric hot water system you could fit a plug-in timer to turn off and on. Turning it off and on manually is a pain in the neck. It takes about three hours to heat the average tank. Once the water has been heated it will stay warm enough for about eight hours for an average family. You do not need that hot water system running overnight, nor for much of the day. Work out when you need the greatest amount of hot water. Find out if there is an off-peak rate too. In our family we can manage to have the hot water off completely for half of every day. You need to experiment and record what you are doing and the results. It certainly lowers that bill!!!